The Reading / Listening - Car Fumes - Level 1

Air pollution can change our brain. A study shows how car fumes change how parts of our brain connect with other parts. The research found that car fumes changed our brain's connectivity in two hours. A researcher was surprised by his research. He said: "For many decades, scientists thought the brain may be protected from the harmful effects of air pollution." He said his study shows there is a connection between air pollution and thinking.

The study was on 25 adults. They breathed car fumes in a laboratory. Scientists took brain scans of the adults for two hours. The scans showed that the thinking networks in the brain changed. There were fewer connections between the networks. Another professor was worried by how traffic pollution changed the networks. She said people should close car windows when in traffic. The brains of the 25 people were OK after they breathed clean air.

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Car Fumes - Level 0 Car Fumes - Level 2   or  Car Fumes - Level 3

Sources
  • https://www.sciencealert.com/inhaling-car-fumes-can-change-a-brains-connectivity-in-just-2-hours-study-finds
  • https://neurosciencenews.com/air-pollution-functional-connectivity-22355/
  • https://ca.news.yahoo.com/breathing-exhaust-fumes-impairs-human-brains-within-two-hours-154151191.html


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. Air pollution can
  2. car
  3. parts of our brain connect
  4. fumes changed our brain's
  5. A researcher was surprised
  6. For many
  7. be protected from the harmful
  8. a connection between air pollution
  1. decades
  2. with other parts
  3. by his research
  4. effects
  5. fumes
  6. connectivity
  7. and thinking
  8. change our brain

Paragraph 2

  1. The study was
  2. They breathed
  3. Scientists took brain
  4. the thinking networks in
  5. There were fewer
  6. Another professor was
  7. people should close
  8. they breathed clean
  1. worried
  2. scans of the adults
  3. air
  4. car fumes
  5. car windows
  6. connections
  7. on 25 adults
  8. the brain changed

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

Air pollution can (1) ___________________. A study shows how car fumes change how parts of (2) ___________________ with other parts. The research found that car (3) __________________ brain's connectivity in two hours. A researcher was surprised (4) ___________________. He said: "For many decades, scientists thought the brain may be protected from (5) ___________________ of air pollution." He said his study shows there is a connection between air (6) _________________.

The study was on 25 adults. (7) ___________________ fumes in a laboratory. Scientists (8) ___________________ of the adults for two hours. The scans showed that the thinking networks in (9) ___________________. There were fewer connections between the networks. Another professor (10) ________________ how traffic pollution changed the networks. She said people should (11) ___________________ when in traffic. The brains of the 25 people were OK after they (12) ___________________.

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Airpollutioncanchangeourbrain.Astudyshowshowcarfumeschangeh
owpartsofourbrainconnectwithotherparts.Theresearchfoundthatcar
fumeschangedourbrain'sconnectivityintwohours.Aresearcherwassu
rprisedbyhisresearch.Hesaid:"Formanydecades,scientiststhoughtt
hebrainmaybeprotectedfromtheharmfuleffectsofairpollution."Hesai
dhisstudyshowsthereisaconnectionbetweenairpollutionandthinking
.Thestudywason25adults.Theybreathedcarfumesinalaboratory.Sci
entiststookbrainscansoftheadultsfortwohours.Thescansshowedthat
thethinkingnetworksinthebrainchanged.Therewerefewerconnectio
nsbetweenthenetworks.Anotherprofessorwasworriedbyhowtrafficp
ollutionchangedthenetworks.Shesaidpeopleshouldclosecarwindows
whenintraffic.Thebrainsofthe25peoplewereOKaftertheybreathedcle
anair.

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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